Hoje, conversámos com Alina Cincan, sobre alguns aspetos da sua profissão em localização e tecnologia, sobre a importância do associativismo e ainda sobre alguns conselhos para a nova geração de profissionais.

APTRAD: Tell us a little bit about yourself, how you started out in this career, and what made you choose it.

I fell in love with translating while I was at university, studying to become a teacher 🙂 I did both after graduating, first as a full-time teacher and part-time translator/interpreter, but it was the translation career that won in the end. I gave up teaching and dedicated myself to this profession full-time (and more).

What made me choose it? I guess what makes all of us in this profession choose it – it is a fascinating career, never a dull day in our lives due to the variety of clients and projects.

APTRAD: How would you describe a “normal” day in your working life?

As you probably know, there is no such thing as a “normal day” in our line of work. As a wearer of many hats (translator, project manager, business owner – and a mum), each day is different, though there are some patterns. Monday mornings are usually dedicated to catching up with emails (not that many usually, as I also do a clean-up on Friday evenings, and I also deal with anything urgent that comes up during weekends), Fridays afternoons are for admin work. This helps me wrap up for the week and enjoy weekends. It also ensures I am not overwhelmed on Monday morning.

APTRAD: Are you a member of any professional association/organisation? If you are, what made you join it? If not, why haven’t you joined yet?

I am, yes, of several associations: I am a Chartered Linguist and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL), a member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (including of the ITI Medical and Pharmaceutical Network), and a member of the Mediterranean Editors and Translators.

For me, being a member of a professional association (relevant to one’s languages and country) means recognition of one’s status as a professional, as well as commitment to quality and ethics. The CIOL was the first association I joined and being a member has helped my career in so many ways! I was very happy to have been accepted as a member of the ITI for both English into Romanian and Romanian into English.

As for MET, I think it was recommended by a colleague. I had a look at what they do and the activities they organise are really close to my heart (hello, reading club!) They are a highly active association.
The main benefits of being a member of a professional association is the quality of the continuing professional development activities they offer, which more than make up for the membership fees.

APTRAD: From your experience, what makes a “good” professional in this area?

In a nutshell, a combination of hard skills and soft skills. Of course, the most important part is having the right skills for the job – language proficiency, good research skills, but also quality assurance processes in place. On top of this, ensure you do not accept a project if the topic is outside your expertise, make sure you are responsive, professional, and deliver on time. 

APTRAD: What do you like the most and what do you like the least about your work?

The diversity is by far the thing I love the most. My least favourite thing is chasing unpaid invoices.

APTRAD: What advice would you give someone who wants to become a translator and/or interpreter?

Don’t be afraid to ask for help and advice from others – feedback is the only way to grow. Also, never stop learning and improving your skills.

APTRAD: Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?

In case you missed the research I published last year, based on an extensive survey for freelance translators, you may want to have a look: https://inboxtranslation.com/resources/research/freelance-translator-survey-2023/

Thank you, Alina, for answering our questions!

To know more about Alina Cincan, you can follow her on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alinacincan/] or Twitter [https://twitter.com/AlinaCincan]. 

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Biografia:

In her almost 20 years as a translation professional, Alina Cincan has been wearing many hats: translator – Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Linguists, Chartered Linguist (Language Specialist), member of the Mediterranean Editors and Translators, member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting, project manager, international conference speaker, and author. Her latest project is an extensive research study on the freelance translation landscape.